A valley truss is a truss used in the construction of rooves having different sections that meet at an angle, such as the case when a section of a roof extends perpendicularly from a main section of the roof. Two examples of typical usage of valley trusses in roof framing are illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. The valley trusses are used to form a transition between two different sections of the roof. A series of progressively smaller valley trusses 11 transition from the angular extension 15 of the roof to the main roof 17. A valley V is formed where the two roof sections meet, which is why these particular trusses are referred to as valley trusses. The valley trusses are supported by the underlying trusses 13 of the main roof section 17.
When a valley truss is set upon a support truss of the main roof, there is typically a downward sliding force due to the slope angle of the main roof (see FIG. 2) and, at times, an uplift wind force that that must be transferred into the main roof. Thus, one of the issues when connecting a valley truss to an underlying truss is that the connection must be able to resist these downward sliding forces and uplift wind forces. Traditionally, support wedges were placed under the valley truss bottom chord to help address this problem. Another traditional solution is to make a bevel cut in the bottom chord of the valley truss so the lower surface of the bottom chord matches the slope of the support truss. More recently, valley truss ties or valley truss clips have been developed to connect a valley truss to an underlying support truss of the main roof and to transfer loads from the valley truss into the support structure below. Valley truss ties are often specially designed to facilitate connection of valley trusses to the underlying support trusses over a range of slope angles.